big smiles, bright lights

posted Friday, August 7th, 09

Last evening marked yet another big moment in the early growth of the Leftbank… it was the coupling of two events – a ritual monthly(ish) happy hour and the GRAND opening open house of the GreenVille Project.

Celebrating the opening of its new Portland headquarters here in the building, GreenVille founders Jae Larsen, Eva Longoria and Butch Klein did it in style. They invited the Mayor, pedicabs, models, big wigs and small wigs alike. We invited the rest of the Leftbank community, and all rolled together, this one was a scene. Food, drink, music, a melting ice cap sculpture Jae carved herself, a TV crew (see their work here), and even some trees played a role. Those came courtesy of Portland’s Friends of Trees, a beautifully simple, dedicated, and effective non-profit who are ‘greening’ the city in the most literal, tangible way.

We also took time to welcome more new tenants to the Leftbank community… First Gameplan, a potent bunch who specialize in capacity building for non-profit groups and organizations (presently moving into suite 208), and then gallopowell studio (taking 210 – and yeah, I am the ‘powell’ in gallopowell). We both got baskets filled with gifts from the other tenants, and while carrying around a basket at a party is not the way I usually roll, the symbolic transition from working-on/developing/imagining this place to being a ‘tenant’ here felt damned fine. Now a day later, thinking about digging in and doing work alongside GreenVille, Gameplan, PFM, FMYI, Blue Tree, dc202 and the rest feels even better. Let’s get to work!